By Hayley Nations
Just this June, one of Portales’ own won the International Livestock Auctioneer Championship. Beating out auctioneers from South Africa, Australia, Canada, and all over the United States, Sixto Paiz lives in Portales, but travels all over the southwest, auctioning cattle and cars. The championship is judged based on clarity, accuracy, pace, rhythm, and interpretation of bids.
When discussing his experience winning the award, he described it as huge. “It was different than any other competition I’ve done. It’s a competition that I’ve watched and paid attention to for a very long time.” He said the stadium was large, and he saw himself on the jumbotron screens in front of thousands of people. Right after, he got to sell the grand champion steer and the reserve champion steer from the junior livestock sale. He said it was neat because all the pressure was off.
Winning auctioneering awards is nothing new for Sixto. He has placed first in at least five competitions so far this year, competing and placing in ten to date. He explains that his goal is to win the “Triple Crown”, a combination of awards: the International Auctioneer Championship, World Automobile Auctioneer Championship, and the World Livestock Championship. With his win this year, he is moving closer to his goal.
Auctioneering includes much more than speaking quickly, especially when it comes to competing. “You get to meet like-minded individuals that are in the industry,” says Sixto, describing the networking that is a part of auctioneering competitions. Making connections with buyers and sellers is a significant part of auctioneering. Travel is also an important aspect, as there are few auctions in New Mexico. “I travel about 1500 miles a week, just traveling through my regular sales.”
Sixto wasn’t always an auctioneer. He had an uncle who got him interested and helped him make connections with some people involved in auctions. First, he worked an oil field, but when he saw that cutbacks were coming, he volunteered to leave. He found a business card from an old friend of his uncle’s and attended an auctioneer school in Texas, learning state laws for selling and the business side of auctions.
His favorite part of auctioneering? The challenge. “It’s become more of a game to me,” he says. He needs to keep track of who buys what, who is looking for certain types of cattle, and who sells what. “I have to figure that out in the first ten minutes. Who’s flagging in on what? What are they looking for? It’s to expedite the sale and basically just figure out how to play that game.”
An exciting career choice with exciting results; congratulations to an exceptional community member.
